[Koha] Having more than one 'barcode' for an item

[Kevin O'Rourke]

James Weinheimer wrote:
> Once you start to barcode--which is a unique number, I think there will be
> little reason to continue the accessions numbers. I have discovered that
> this can be very difficult for staff to accept, but maintaining multiple
> unique numbers is even more difficult in the long run.
>   
I don't think our library staff have any particular attachment to 
accession numbers, so changing over to a different system would not be 
an issue.
> Barcoding should not be seen only as more work. They can take the place of
> old processes as well. And if you are definitely going to barcode, then it
> should begin as soon as possible, since everything you do today will need a
> barcode sooner or later. It's easy to put a barcode on an item while you
> process it, but believe me: afterwards, it becomes *very difficult!*.
>   
The issue isn't so much the work of sticking barcodes on items, although 
even just buying appropriate labels to print barcodes on is difficult in 
Nigeria!  It was more to reduce manual data entry, barcode readers are 
going to be expensive and difficult to procure here and when they fail 
(as they inevitably will) it will take time to get replacements.

Kevin

-- 
Kevin O'Rourke
ICT Coordinator, National Teachers' Institute, Kaduna, Nigeria
062 316972